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A  BULLETIN 


ON  THE 


CONDITION  OF      HE  COUNTY 
JAILS  OF  MISSOURI 


CHARLES  A.  pLLWOOD,  Ph.  D. 

Professor  of  Sociology 


or  THE    ^ 

UNIVWSITY 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  SOCIOLOGY 

UNIVERSITY  OF  MISSOURI 

June,  1904 


A  BULLETIN  ON  THE  CONDITION  OF  THE 
COUNTY  JAILS  OF  MISSOURI. 


I. 

The  Condition  of  the  County  Jails  of  Missouki. 

Statistics.  The  following  statistics  of  the  county 
jails  of  Missouri  were  obtained  largely  through  the 
county  sheriffs.  In  about  ten  per  cent,  of  the  cases  con- 
ditions were  investigated  directly  by  student  investiga- 
tors. It  was  found  possible  to  obtain  information  from 
only  eighty-two  counties,  as  no  reports  could  be  secured 
from  the  remaining  thirty- two.  However,  in  spite  of 
the  relative  crudeness  of  the  method  by  which  the  statis- 
tics were  gathered  and  in  spite  of  their  relative  incom- 
pleteness, there  can  be  no  doubt  that  they  present  a 
fairly  accurate  picture  of  the  jail  system  of  the  State. 
The  error,  if  any,  must  consist  in  the  failure  to  reveal 
all  the  evils  of  the  system,  since  the  information  in 
most  cases  was  furnished  by  the  officers  in  charge  of  the 
jails,  and  since  the  eighty-two  counties  reporting  rep- 
resent four-fifths  of  the  population  and  wealth  of  the 
State. 

Two  of  the  counties  reporting  (Morgan  and  Ozark) 
have  no  jails,  but  send  their  prisoners  to  neighboring 
counties.  The  chief  statistics  of  the  jails^of  the  eighty 
remaining  counties  are  herewith  presented  in  tabular 
form. 


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Max.  No.  of  pris- 
oners in  one  cell . 


Matron. 


Jailer  other  than 
sheriff 


Provisions  against 
fire 


Cost  of  I'ail 


Serving 
sentences 


Awaiting 
trial 


Colored. 


White. 


Serving 
sentences 


Awaiting 
trial .   . 


Colored . 


White. 


I  I  Total 


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The  total  population  of  these  eighty  jails  on  Jan- 
uary 1,  1904,*  consisted  of  843  prisoners,  exclusive  of 
six  witnesses  detained  and  two  insane  persons.  Of 
these  843  prisoners  486  were  awaiting  trial,  and  357 
serving  sentences.  The  relatively  small  proportion  of 
those  serving  sentences  is  to  be  accounted  for  through 
the  fact  that  Kansas  City  and  St.  Louis  have  municipal 
workhouses,  and  to  these  nearly  all  prisoners  serving 
sentences  longer  than  a  few  days  are  sent.  If  we  consider 
the  rural  jails  alone,  the  ratio  between  those  awaiting 
trial  and  those  serving  sentences  is  reversed.  Of  the 
total  number  of  prisoners  537  were  white  and  306  were 
colored.  This  makes  the  proportion  of  colored  pris- 
oners in  our  jails  a  little  over  36  per  cent.,  while  the  col- 
ored element  constitutes  but  5.2  per  cent,  of  the  whole 
population  of  the  State.  The  number  of  female  pris- 
oners in  these  eighty  jails  was  fifty-eight,  of  whom 
twenty-one  were  white  and  thirty-seven  colored.  The 
number  of  prisoners  under  eighteen  years  of  age  was 
forty-two,  of  whom  twenty-two  were  awaiting  trial  and 
twenty  serving  sentences.  This  very  small  number  of 
prisoners  under  eighteen  is  without  doubt  due  to  the 
operation  of  the  Juvenile  Court  and  Probation  Law,  as 
no  prisoners  under  eighteen  were  reported  in  either  the 
St.  Louis  or  Kansas  City  jails. 

The  total  number  of  jail  prisoners  in  Missouri,  say 
on  an  average  winter  day,  may  be  estimated  on  the  basis 
of  the  returns  from  these  eighty  county  jails.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  thirty-two  county  jails  not  reporting,  there 
are  the  jails  and  lock-ups  of  553  incorporated  cities,  vil- 
lages and  towns,  and  the  workhouses  of  Kansas  City 
and  St.  Louis.  It  would  seem  reasonable  to  estimate 
the  number  of  prisoners  in  these  institutions  on  a  given 
day,  at   the  least,  at  twice  the   number  in  the  eighty 


♦The  date  January  1st,  is  somewhat  arbitrarily  taken.  While 
a  majority  of  the  reports  were  received  about  that  date  many 
came  in  several  weeks  later. 


jails  reporting.  If  this  is  done  the  estimate  of  the  total 
jail  population  of  the  State  on  an  average  winter  day 
would  be  about  2,500. 

Construction  of  the  Jails.  The  average  cost  of  a 
Missouri  county  jail,  outside  of  the  three  large  cities  of 
the  State,  is  $6,540.  This  estimate  is  based  on  the  re- 
turns from  fifty-six  counties.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that 
this  is  about  $2,000  more  than  the  cost  of  the  average 
Missouri  almshouse,  a  fact  which  is  to  be  explained, 
probably,  by  the  greater  difficulty  in  keeping  prisoners 
under  restraint  and  the  costly  construction  consequently 
required. 

Of  the  fifty-six  jails  whose  cost  of  construction  is 
reported,  twenty-four  cost  less  than  $5,000,  and  three  of 
these  less  than  $1,000 ;  twenty-three  cost  from  $5,000  to 
$10,000  inclusive;  and  nine  cost  over  $10,000.  In  the 
cost  of  these  jails  is  usually  included  the  cost  of  the 
sheriff's  residence,  where  this  is  furnished.  It  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  the  jails  of  Buchanan  and  Jackson 
counties  and  of  St.  Louis  city  are  not  included  in  the 
fifty-six  reporting. 

Seven  out  of  the  eighty  jails  rejwrting  are  built  of 
wood,  while  either  brick  or  stone  is  the  material  used  in 
the  remaining.  The  material  of  the  cells  is  in  nearly 
all  cases  iron  or  steel,  although  in  five  jails  the  ceUs 
are  of  stone  and  in  two  jails  wooden  cells  exist  along 
with  steel  ones. 

The  danger  of  fire  is  one  of  the  chief  things  to  be 
guarded  against  in  jail  construction.  Of  course,  the  only 
adequate  provision  against  fires  is  to  have  the  jail  fire- 
proof. Twenty  counties  report  that  they  have  fire-proof 
jails,  namely,  Atchison,  Bollinger,  Buchanan,  Caldwell^ 
Clay,  Cooper,  Daviess,  Franklin,  Howard,  Jackson,  La- 
fayette, Livingston,  Marion,  Moniteau,  Nodaway,  Ore- 
gon, Pettis,  Pike,  Ripley,  and  St.  Louis  city.    Eight 


other  jails  report  that  they  have  special  provisions 
against  fire  in  the  shape  of  water  tanks  and  other  sim- 
ilar arrangements.  In  the  remaining  fifty-two  jails  no 
special  provisions  against  fire  of  any  sort  are  reported. 

A  jail  may  be  fire-proof  and  yet  be  antiquated. 
Probably  the  best  test  of  the  adaptation  of  a  jail  to  its 
work  is  its  sanitary  arrangements,  that  is,  its  arrange- 
ments for  heating  and  lighting,  ventilation,  drainage, 
bathing,  and  water  closets.  Of  seventy-nine  jails  re- 
porting as  to  their  sanitary  arrangements  twelve  report 
fully  modern  arrangements,  twenty-nine  partially  mod- 
em, while  thirty-eight  have  only  the  primitive  con- 
veniences of  half  a  century  ago.  On  the  whole,  this  is 
a  good  showing— fully  one-half  of  the  jails  being 
equipped  with  partially  or  fully  modern  sanitary  ar- 
rangements. It  is  relatively  much  better  than  the  show- 
ing made  by  the  county  almshouses— probably  because 
the  close  confinement  of  prisoners  makes  more  necessary 
the  employment  of  modern  conveniences. 

One  of  the  worst  charges  made  against  Missouri 
jails  is  that  they  fail  to  hold  their  prisoners,  especially 
criminals  of  the  desperate  or  professional  type.  Cer- 
tainly reports  of  jail-breaking  by  this  type  of  prisoner 
are  frequent  enough  in  the  newspapers  of  the  State.  Ac- 
cordingly one  point  upon  which  information  was  sought 
was  the  provisions  against  jail-breaking.  It  was  found 
that  only  five  of  the  eighty  jails  maintained  a  night 
watch,  namely,  those  of  Buchanan,  Greene,  Jackson  and 
Pike  counties  and  St.  Louis  city.  Four  other  jails  re- 
ported especially  strong  construction  designed  to  pre- 
vent jail-breaking.  Two  reported  that  bloodhounds  were 
used  to  prevent  the  escape  of  prisoners,  a  device  which 
in  practice,  we  may  remark,  has  often  been  shown  to  be 
ineffective.  The  remaining  jails  report  that  they  have 
no  special  provisions  to  prevent  jail-breaking. 


8 


Jail  Management.  A  rough  measure  of  the  stage  / 
of  development  of  jail  administration  in  a  State  is  the 
extent  to  which  jailers  and  matrons  are  employed. 
Eighteen  jails,  according  to  the  reports,  have  jailers 
other  than  the  sheriff;  while  in  sixty-one  counties  the 
sheriff  acts  as  jailer.  Sixteen  jails,  according  to  the 
reports,  have  matrons,  while  sixty-three  have  no  ma- 
trons. In  many  of  the  cases  where  matrons  are  re- 
ported the  matron  is  the  jailer's  or  the  sheriff's  wife— 
a  practice  to  which  there  is  no  objection,  provided  that 
it  is  officially  understood  that  the  duties  of  matron  are 
to  be  so  performed  and  provided  that  the  number  of 
female  prisoners  is  not  large. 

On  account  of  insufficient  help  the  officers  of  many 
of  our  county  jails  (twenty-eight  out  of  the  whole  num- 
ber reporting)  are  forced  to  employ  ** trusties."  This 
practice  oannot— be  too  strongly  condemned,  as  the 
** trusties"  are  almost  certain  either  to  aid  in  the 
escape  of  prisoners  or  to  smuggle  whiskey  and  other 
contraband  articles  into  the  jail. 

The  best  measure  of  the  development  of  jail  ad- 
ministration in  a  State,  however,  is  the  extent  to  which 
classification  is  employed.  By  this  is  meant  the  abso- 
lute separation  of  different  classes  of  prisoners  in  dif- 
ferent apartments  of  the  jail.  This  requires  separate 
apartments  for  women,  for  children,  for  young  first  of- 
fenders, for  old  hardened  offenders,  and  for  witnesses 
and  the  insane.  As  in  the  case  of  our  almshouses,  it  is 
too  much  to  say  that  classification  does  not  exist  in  the 
majority  of  our  jails;  but  the  returns  show  that  there 
is  actually  no  classification  in  thirty-three  jails  out 
of  seventy-seven  reporting.  This  is  due  largely  to  the 
fact  that  the  jail  often  consists  of  a  single  large  apart- 
ment or  room,  ^o  that  the  only  separation  of  sexes  or 
races  which  is  possible  is  that  of  putting  them  in  differ- 
ent cells.     Twenty-six  counties  report  that  there  is  en- 

9 


tire  separation  of  the  sexes  in  their  jails,  but  that  this  is 
the  only  classification  attempted.  Ten  counties  report 
that  there  is  separation  both  of  sexes,  and  races.  Two 
report  separation  of  races  only  and  five  have  a  classifica- 
tion according  to  sex  and  age.  Eighteen  jails  report 
that  they  have  apartments  for  the  temporary  confine- 
ment of  the  insane. 

The  management  of  the  jail  upon  the  *^  separate 
system''  (the  system  most  highly  indorsed  for  county 
and  city  jails)  appears  to  be  unknown  in  Missouri. 
Solitary  confinement,  it  is  true,  is  often  resorted  to  as 
a  means  of  discipline,  but  the  idea  of  separate  cellular 
isolation  for  each  prisoner  both  by  day  and  by  night  is 
unthought  of.  This  is  largely  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
construction  of  the  jail  usually  does  not  favor  such  a 
system.  Indeed,  in  only  a  very  few  county  jails  is  there 
a  separate  cell  provided  for  each  prisoner.  Usually  the 
jail  is  so  built  that  several  prisoners  have  to  be  kept 
in  each  cell  if  the  jail  is  at  all  full,  while  the  open,  barred 
doors  of  the  cells  face  each  other.  Out  of  sixty-eight 
jails  reporting  only  seven  reported  that  not  more  than 
one  prisoner  was  confined  in  one  cell ;  twenty- three  gave 
two  as  the  maximum  number  confined  in  a  cell ;  twenty- 
five  gave  either  three  or  four  as  the  maximum  number ; 
while  in  not  less  than  thirteen  jails  of  the  State  the  max- 
imum number  of  prisoners  confined  in  a  cell  was  above 
four.  Some  jails  report  as  high  as  twelve,  fifteen,  and 
even  eighteen  prisoners  confined  in  a  single  cell.  In 
such  cases,  however,  the  cell  is  really  a  room,  the  jail 
consisting  of  a  single  large  apartment  not  divided  into 
cells.  In  addition  to  the  inevitable  commingling  of  the 
prisoners  brought  about  by  faulty  structure  of  most 
jails,  there  seem  to  be  no  rules  in  Missouri  jails  against 
the  intermingling  of  prisoners  in  the  corridors.  All 
sheriffs  without  exception  report  that  when  prisoners 
are  well  behaved  they  are  allowed  to  leave  their  cells 

10 


and  intermingle  freely  in  the  corridor.  The  result  is 
that  we  have  in  our  Missouri  jails  that  association  of 
the  vicious  and  depraved  with  the  comparatively  inno- 
cent, and  the  moral  contamination  necessarily  resulting, 
which  has  rightly  led  to  the  jail  being  called  a  **  crime- 
breeder.'^  The  remedy  must  be  sought  in  a  stricter 
classification  of  the  prisoners  and  in  the  construction 
of  jails  which  can  be  administered  upon  the  separate 
plan. 

Another  matter  of  great  importance  in  the  manage- 
ment of  a  jail,  is  the  employment  of  prisoners.  Work 
should  be  required  of  all  prisoners  serving  sentences, 
and  should  be  furnished  to  those  awaiting  trial  if  they 
desire  it.  This  is  all  the  more  necessary  when  the  sep- 
arate system  is  not  employed,  as  it  is  the  association  of 
prisoners  in  idleness  which  makes  the  jail  a  center  of 
moral  corruption  in  society.  Of  seventy-three  jails  re- 
porting as  to  the  matter  of  the  employment  of  prisoners, 
twenty-one  require  work  of  all  prisoners  serving  sen- 
tences ;  in  thirty-seven  work  is  optional,  being  usually  in 
the  nature  of  chores  about  the  jail;  while  fifteen  state 
definitely  that  no  work  of  any  sort  is  furnished  the  pris- 
oners. Only  forty-four  jails  report  on  the  nature  of  the 
work  furnished.  In  nine  of  these  the  work  is  breaking- 
rock  ;  in  eighteen  it  is  road  work,  either  on  city  streets 
or  on  county  roads;  in  seventeen  the  work  is  cleaning 
and  doing  other  chores  about  the  jail.  As  regards  these 
different  kinds  of  employment,  it  must  be  said  that  road 
work  is  the  least  suited  to  produce  a  good  effect  on  the 
prisoner.  Because  it  takes  the  prisoner  from  the  jail, 
exposes  him  to  the  public  gaze,  and  necessitates  the 
*  *  chain  gang,  * '  it  negatives  any  good  effect  which  labor 
in  itself  may  have.  Chores  about  the  jail  are  usually 
not  sufficient  of  course  to  keep  employed  more  than  one 
or  two  prisoners,  and  generally  such  work  is  not  hard 
enough  to  have  a  deterrent  effect.    Probably  the  break- 

11 


ing  of  rock  for  the  roads  is  the  best,  and  at  the  same 
time  the  most  available,  form  of  labor  for  jail  prisoners. 

Very  little  provision  seems  to  be  made  in  the  county 
jails  for  caring  for  sick  prisoners.  Four  jails,  located 
in  cities,  i.  e.,  those  of  Buchanan,  Jackson,  and  Pettis 
counties  and  St.  Louis  city,  send  their  sick  prisoners  to 
the  city  hospital.  The  jailer  of  the  Osage  county  jail 
reports  that  he  has  sick  prisoners  cared  for  in  private 
families.  Seven  jails,  according  to  the  reports,  are  pro- 
vided with  special  cells  or  apartments  for  sick  prison- 
ers. This  latter  plan  is  to  be  especially  commended  for 
rural  jails ;  where  the  sick  prisoner  cannot  be  sent  to  a 
hospital,  the  jail  should  always  be  provided  with  an 
apartment  which  may  be  used  for  the  sick. 

Of  the  eighty  jails  but  twenty-four  have  any  sort 
of  religious  service  for  the  prisoners.  In  all  except  two 
or  three  of  these  the  services  seem  to  be  held  only  oc- 
casionally. The  jails  seem  entirely  destitute  of  other 
moral  or  reformatory  influences,  except  that  about  a 
dozen  sheriffs  and  jailers  report  that  they  enforce  upon 
their  prisoners  a  rigid  discipline  and  methodical  rules 
of  living. 

In  conclusion,  it  might  be  well  to  quote  at  length 
from  the  report  of  one  investigator  as  to  the  conditions 
which  he  found  in  one  county  jail.  These  conditions,  to 
be  sure,  are  not  typical,  but  they  show  us  what  our  jails 
are  when  they  are  poorly  constructed  or  of  inadequate 
capacity.  ^^On  the  morning  of  January  22d,  when  I 
visited  the  jail,  there  were  forty-two  men  confined,  thus 
giving  to  each  man  225  cubic  feet  of  space  [500  cubic 
feet  for  each  individual  should  be  the  least  amount  of 
space  allowed].  During  the  fall,  the  jailer  told  me,  he 
had  as  high  as  seventy-five  men  in  there  at  one  time, 
and  that  would  give  to  each  one  125  cubiq  feet.  And  he 
further  said  that  he  had  seen  as  many  as  eighty-five 
men  in  there  at  one  time,  which  would  give  to  each  man 

12 


112  cubic  feet.  The  steel  cells  are  about  6x6  and  5x7 
feet,  or  contain  about  273  cubic  feet  of  space.  The 
jailer  said  they  had  been  compelled  to  put  six  men  to 
sleep  in  one  of  these  cages  at  a  time  when  the  jail  was 
full.  That  would  give  each  man  45.5  cubic  feet  of  space, 
with  the  only  advantage  that  one  side  of  the  cage  is  bar 
instead  of  solid  steel." 

Progress  During  1903.  Probably  the  most  note- 
worthy change  brought  about  in  oui"  jail  system  during 
the  past  year  was  effected  through  the  Juvenile  Court 
Act  passed  by  the  last  Legislature.  The  result  of  this 
act  was  to  take  the  children  entirely  out  of  the  jails  of 
St.  Louis  and  Kansas  City.  As  will  be  seen  by  refer- 
ence to  the  table  of  statistics,  there  are  now  no  offenders 
under  eighteen  in  the  jails  of  either  of  these  cities.  This 
is  a  great  step  in  advance.  Unfortunately  the  law  ap- 
plies only  to  St.  Louis  and  Kansas  City;  there  is  no 
reason  why  the  next  Legislature  should  not  extend  its 
most  general  provisions  to  the  counties  and  the  smaller 
cities. 

Another  important  law  passed  by  the  last  Legisla- 
ture which  will  gradually  work  a  transformation  in  our 
jail  system  is  the  act  creating  County  Boards  of  Visitors 
to  visit  the  county's  charitable  and  correctional  institu- 
tions. Such  boards  of  visitors  have  now  been  appointed 
in  twenty-eight  counties.  A  list  of  these  counties  and 
the  terms  of  the  law  have  already  been  given  in  the  Bul- 
letin on  the  Almshouses.  It  is  enough  here  to  note 
merely  that  reports  from  several  of  these  counties  indi- 
cate that  the  boards  of  visitors  are  doing  good  work  in 
bringing  about  improved  conditions  in  the  jails  as  well 
as  in  the  almshouses. 

Several  counties  have  erected  new  jails  during  the 
past  year.  Among  these  are  Atchison  and  Moniteau, 
both  of  which  erected  good  jails  along  modem  lines. 

13 


Perry  county  reports  that  a  new  jail  will  be  erected  this 
year.  In  several  other  counties  the  matter  of  erecting 
a  new  jail  is  being  agitated.  Here  should  perhaps  be 
mentioned  the  work  of  the  Pauley  Jail  Building  Com- 
pany of  St.  Louis.  This  company,  though  wholly  for 
commercial  reasons,  has  always  used  its  influence  to  se- 
cure the  erection  of  the  best  type  of  modem  jails  in  the 
State.  To  this  company  is  due,  therefore,  not  a  little  of 
the  credit  for  whatever  good  jails  we  possess  in  Mis- 
souri. 

II. 

A  SUMMAEY  OF  THE  PeINCIPLES  WhICH  ShOULD  GoVERN 

THE  Construction  and  Management  of 
County  Jails. 

The  county  jail  has  been  called '  *  a  school  of  crime. ' ' 
The  promiscuous  herding  of  prisoners  of  all  ages,  both 
sexes,  and  of  all  degrees  of  criminality  which  so  often 
obtains  in  county  and  city  jails  is  certainly  in  the 
highest  degree  demoralizing  to  the  prisoners,  spreads 
the  contagion  of  crime  among  them,  and  so  makes  the 
jail  an  instrumentality  in  the  propagation  of  crime.  So 
bad  has  the  county  jail  been  generally  in  this  country 
that  many  experts  have  not  hesitated  to  advocate  its 
entire  abolition,  while  others  would  make  it  merely  a 
place  of  safe  custody  for  those  awaiting  trial.  Both  of 
these  courses  are,  however,  impossible  with  our  present 
political  institutions.  Moreover,  the  reform  of  the 
county  jail  is  entirely  practicable  if  a  knowledge  of  the 
principles  which  underlie  its  correct  administration  can 
be  widely  diffused. 

The  vital  point  in  jail  administration,  all  experts 
agree,  is  adequate  provision  for  complete  classification 
and  separation  of  the  prisoners.    It  is  the  promiscuous 

14 


association  together  of  prisoners  in  idleness  which  is  the 
source  of  their  corruption  in  our  present  jails.  Classi- 
fication and  separation  of  prisoners  is,  therefore,  the 
remedy  for  most  of  the  evils  connected  with  the  jail 
system. 

An  adequate  classification  should  provide  separate 
apartments  (1)  for  women,  (2)  for  children,  (3)  for 
witnesses  and  for  insane  persons,  (4)  for  first  offend- 
ers, and  (5)  for  old  or  habitual  offenders.  These  five 
classes  of  prisoners  should  be  entirely  separated  from 
one  another ;  hence  their  apartments  should  be  in  separ- 
ate rooms  of  the  jail,  or  at  least  separated  by  partitions 
which  render  communication  between  them  impossible. 
If  the  jail  has  two  stories  the  first  story  may  be  divided 
into  two  apartments  for  men  (for  first  offenders  and  for 
old  offenders),  while  the  second  story  may  be  divided 
into  apartments  for  women,  children,  insane  persons  and 
detained  witnesses.  The  department  for  children  should 
be  as  remote  as  possible  from  the  rest  of  the  jail,  and 
should  consist  simply  of  a  number  of  well-guarded 
rooms  rather  than  of  a  series  of  steel  cells.  Children, 
indeed,  should  never  be  committed  to  jail  if  a  place  of 
safe  custody  can  be  found  for  them  elsewhere;  especi- 
ally is  this  true  of  children  under  twelve  years  of  age. 
But  it  will  often  be  necessary  that  children  under  six- 
teen be  confined  in  jail,  and  hence  a  suitable  apartment 
must  be  provided  for  them.  Insane  persons  also  should 
not  be  committed  to  jail  except  under  exceptional  cir- 
cumstances as  when  extremely  violent  or  inclined  to 
commit  criminal  acts,  and  then  detained  only  pending 
their  examination  or  the  making  of  arrangements  for 
their  removal  to  a  hospital.  In  most  cases  a  siogle  room, 
properly  safe-guarded,  will  be  sufficient  in  a  county  jail 
for  both  the  insane  and  the  detained  witnesses,  as  the 
number  of  these  classes  who  have  to  be  dealt  with  is 
small  except  in  large  urban  communities. 

15 


The  above  classification  of  prisoners  should  be 
supplmented  and  reinforced  by  the  separate  confinement 
of  each  prisoner.  That  is,  only  one  prisoner  should  be 
allowed  to  occupy  a  cell,  and  communication  between 
cells  should  be  rendered  difficult  if  not  impossible.  This 
** separate  system''  of  confinement  as  it  is  called,  is 
unanimously  recommended  by  experts  for  city  and 
county  jails.  It  is  the  distinguishing  feature  of  the 
English  jail  system,  and  English  jails  are  the  best  in 
the  world.  The  following  are  some  of  the  chief  advan- 
tages of  separate  confinement  in  county  jails:  (1)  It 
secures  the  salutary  effect  of  a  first  arrest  upon  inex- 
perienced o:ffenders,  which  is  dissipated  by  association ; 
(2)  it  prevents  the  contagion  of  crime  which  results  in 
making  our  jails  schools  of  crime;  (3)  it  prevents  the 
escape  of  prisoners  and  at  the  same  time  protects  the 
jailer,  making  the  government  of  the  jail  an  easy  mat- 
ter; (4)  it  is  wholesome  discipline  for  the  vicious;  (5) 
it  protects  the  better  class  of  prisoners  who  do  not  wish 
to  associate  with  the  vile  and  depraved,  and  saves  them 
from  recognition  and  annoyance  by  other  prisoners  after 
their  discharge. 

The  usual  objection  to  separate  confinement  is  that 
it  is  injurious  to  health.  But  English  experience  has 
amply  demonstrated  that  solitary  confinement  for  a 
period  of  less  than  nine  months  does  not  seriously  affect 
health,  and  ninety-nine  per  cent  of  the  jail  sentences  of 
this  country  are  for  periods  of  less  than  nine  months. 

The  best  jails  in  the  United  States,  as  those  of  Eng- 
land, are  managed  upon  the  separate  system.  Sheriffs 
who  have  tried  separate  confinement  for  each  prisoner 
say  that  they  would  not  return  to  the  old  system.  It  is 
the  only  system  which  makes  jail-breaking  practically 
impossible,  the  management  and  control  of  prisoners 
easy,  and  which  effectually  prevents  the  moral  contam- 

16 


ination  of  prisoners  by  one  another  and  giyes  to  each 
ample  opportunity  for  reflection  and  repentance. 

The  only  serious  objection  to  the  separate  system 
for  jails  is  that  it  makes  the  furnishing  of  employment 
for  prisoners  difficult.  But  the  labor  of  jail  prisoners 
is  never  a  matter  of  profit,  as  it  is  clearly  impossible 
to  employ  profitably  a  small  number  of  prisoners  who 
are  constantly  changing.  The  labor  of  jail  prisoners 
is,  therefore,  chiefly  a  matter  of  discipline.  On  this  ac- 
count it  is  important  and  should  be  required  of  every 
prisoner  serving  a  sentence,  even  though  it  be  only  a  short 
one;  but  on  this  account  it  can  also  easily  be  adapted 
to  separate  confinement.  Either  piece-work  can  be 
given  to  the  prisoner  in  his  cell,  or  he  can  be  put  to  work 
alone  upon  the  rock  pile,  so  many  hours  each  week.  Sev- 
eral rock  piles  may  be  used  if  there  are  several  courts 
to  the  jail.  In  the  case  of  old,  hardened  offenders  it 
would  be  permissible  to  set  a  group  of  them  at  work  on 
the  same  rock  pile  under  the  rule  of  strict  silence;  but 
this  shoulcj  never  be  done  with  the  young  first  offenders 
or  those  awaiting  trial. 

Of  course  the  separate  system  cannot  be  adopted  at 
once  by  the  jails  of  this  State,  as  that  would  involve  the 
remodeling,  if  not  the  rebuilding,  of  most  of  them.  But 
every  jail  can  introduce  it  to  some  extent.  All  jails, 
e.  g.,  can  prohibit  the  promiscuous  intermingling  of 
prisoners  in  the  corridor.  Nearly  all  jails  can  introduce 
the  five-fold  classification  of  prisoners,  spoken  of  above, 
with  little  expense,  while  the  better  equipped  jails  can 
easily  provide  for  the  separate  confinement  of  first 
offenders,  the  class  which  most  needs  protection  from 
the  demoralizing  influences  of  the  jail.  Finally  every 
new  jail  can  be  erected  on  the  principle  of  a  separate 
cell  for  every  prisoner  and  separate  apartments  for  each 
class  of  prisoners. 

As  regards  the  number  of  prisoners  confined  in  a 

2  17 


single  cell,  there  seems  to  be  little  excuse  for  the  large 
number  confined  in  one  cell  at  present  in  some  counties 
except  antiquated  conditions.  If  it  is  demoralizing  for 
even  two  prisoners  to  occupy  a  cell  in  common,  it  must 
be  worse  for  three,  four  and  even  six  prisoners  to  be 
thus  confined  together.  Such  a  practice,  as  well  as  the 
permitting  of  promiscuous  intermingling  continually  in 
the  corridor,  is  utterly  subversive  of  all  the  ends  sought 
by  imprisonment. 

The  matter  of  the  employment  of  prisoners  in  jails 
has  already  been  incidentally  noted.  It  should  be  an 
axiom  in  jail  management  that  idleness,  especially  idle- 
ness in  association,  puts  a  premium  upon  crime  and 
gives  opportunity  for  every  evil  to  flourish  inside  the 
prison  walls.  County  courts,  therefore,  should  make 
every  effort  to  furnish  prisoners  in  county  jails  with  em- 
ployment. But  one  form  of  employment  furnished  jail 
prisoners  in  this  State  is  of  doubtful  character ;  that  is, 
work  upon  the  public  roads.  This  necessarily  takes  the 
prisoners  in  gangs  far  from  the  jail,  exposes  them  to 
public  gaze,  subjects  them  to  degrading  treatment  by 
armed  guards,  and  has  so  many  other  objectionable 
features  that  experience  has  everywhere  condemned 
such  work  as  a  rational  way  of  employing  prisoners. 

Methodical  rules  of  living  should  by  all  means  be 
enforce  upon  prisoners  in  jails;  that  is,  they  should  be 
required  to  rise  and  retire  at  definite  hours,  to  devote 
so  much  time  to  work,  to  meals,  and  (if  possible)  to 
study  and  reading  each  day.  This  discipline  is  good  for 
the  prisoner  and  is  what  his  moral  nature  especially 
needs.  Above  all,  the  prisoner  should  be  forced  to  keep 
himself  and  his  cell  scrupulously  clean ;  f  or  ^  *  cleanliuess 
is  always  akin  to  godliness''  and  has  a  reformatory  ef- 
fect upon  the  prisoner. 

Books  and  papers  for  prisoners  should  always  be 
rigidly  inspected  and  excluded  if  they  are  not  of  the 

18 


highest  moral  character.  Games  of  chance  should  not 
be  permitted  except  under  exceptional  circumstances. 

Regular  religious  services  should  be  held  if  possi- 
ble, but  better  yet  would  be  the  encouragement  of  regu- 
lar visits  to  the  prisoners  in  their  cells  by  sensible  per- 
sons who  wish  to  do  personal  religious  work  with  them. 

As  regards  the  proper  construction  of  the  jail  the 
principal  points  have  been  already  dealt  with  in  discuss- 
ing the  management.  The  chief  matter  is  the  provision 
for  the  classification  and  separation  of  prisoners 
through  having  a  number  of  rooms  or  apartments  in  the 
jail  and  separate  cells  for  each  prisoner.  Another  mat- 
ter of  great  importance  is  security  against  jail-breaking. 
This  is  best  accomplished  by  the  use  of  the  steel-cell  con- 
struction. Open  steel  cages  are  however  not  desirable, 
but  the  cell  should  be  constructed  of  steel  plate.  The 
walls,  ceiling,  and  door  of  the  cell  should  be  of  heavy 
steel  plate,  while  the  window  should  be  protected  by 
three-quarter  inch  round  steel  bars  braced  by  cross  bars. 
If  the  floor  of  the  cell  is  not  of  steel  it  should  be  of  solid 
concrete  several  feet  in  thickness.  In  order  to  prevent 
jail-breaking  tools  being  passed  to  the  prisoners  through 
the  outside  windows  it  would  be  well  to  cover  them  with 
a  heavy  wire  screen  which  would  give  clear  evidence  of 
any  attempt  to  introduce  such  articles. 

Another  important  matter  in  the  construction  of  a 
jail  is  protection  against  fire.  Eveiy  jail  should  be  so 
constructed  as  to  be  practically  fire-proof.  This  can  be 
easily  accomplished  if  the  steel-cell  construction  with 
brick  or  stone  walls  is  used.  If  the  sheriff's  residence 
is  attached  to  the  jail  there  should  be  a  fire-proof  parti- 
tion between  the  two. 

The  matter  of  sanitary  arrangements  in  the  con- 
struction of  a  jail,  as  already  noted,  is  of  the  highest  im- 
portance. There  should  be  a  plentiful  supply  of  water 
and  in  each  cell  there  should  be  a  modern  improved 

19 


water-closet  and  wash  bowl,  both  properly  vented.  In 
connection  with  each  apartment  there  should  be  ade- 
quate bathing  facilities.  Heat  should  be  provided  by 
a  steam  or  hot  water  system.  Ventilation  and  drain- 
age should  be  perfect.  Finally,  the  jail  should  be  well 
lighted  both  by  day  and  by  night. 

Jails  constructed  and  managed  as  this  paper  has  de- 
scribed will  be  but  little,  if  any,  costlier  than  our  pres- 
ent jails.  In  the  long  rim  they  will  be  much  cheaper,  for 
they  will  not  be  crime-breeders,  as  our  present  jails  are, 
but  they  will  aid  in  the  repression  of  crime  and  the  re- 
clamation of  the  criminal  class. 


20 


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